2009-11-03

Okay, clearly I'm going to need more than 125 characters at a time to cover this (one space plus the string "@KenChapman46" makes up the difference). This post on Dr. David Swann led to a lot of immediate discussion.

Let's start with the newest one:

@FACLC Linking to your anonymous self as an authority is laughable. Who is "world's best pandemic response team?" Link to proof #ableg

I did link to proof: the TIME magazine article which discussed the actions being taken by CDC. If you don't think the Center for Disease Control is the world's best pandemic response team you can feel free to name another one. Hey, look out below! This blog takes comments!

(note, unlike the previous post I won't be linking to individual Twitter posts. Even when I did this I was accused of "making them up" so clearly I'm wearing down my "Ctrl", "C" and "V" keys unnecessarily)

Maybe now to the bottom:

@FACLC Swann WAS in public health, hospital time irrelevant. The full seniors quote is qualified. u mislead by editing it. Post it all

@FACLC BEING SILENT ON waiting for high-risk Albertans is no evidence of not deferring to them either. MORE MISLEADING - WHO ARE YOU?

Now this implies that just because I found a reference to Swann telling the Legislative Assembly (and by extension the general public) that he would be getting a shot as soon as he had some time to spare the wait that I have no proof he wasn't going to stand there like Benton Fraser in the Due South pilot saying "pardon me after you" to hundreds of people behind him in line. You're right, I don't. But my scenario is infinately the more probable one. We on the right side of the reality/fantasy barrier will stick with my story if that's all right with you.

@FACLC I know who the CDC is & see you apparently quoting them. Why not link to CDC & the quote 2 prove your accuracy? Who are u? #ABLEG

The committee recognized the need to assess supply and demand issues at the local level. The committee further recommended that once the demand for vaccine for these target groups has been met at the local level, programs and providers should begin vaccinating everyone from ages 25 through 64 years. Current studies indicate the risk for infection among persons age 65 or older is less than the risk for younger age groups. Therefore, as vaccine supply and demand for vaccine among younger age groups is being met, programs and providers should offer vaccination to people over the age of 65.

This last Tweet was one of the newer ones that have trickled in as I've typed out this entry [and watched NCIS, and watched some remastered Star Trek, and talked to some girls on the phone, and... -ed]. Not much left to go on now.

And at this point I think I'm pretty much done. In under half an hour the argument has gone from "you're making up all the various tweets you've linked to" and "once you add in a few extra words it magically makes Swann's lies into truths" into "just because he said he was going to get innoculated right away and said how important it was for people to do it doesn't mean there's any reason to believe he would" into "I didn't see you link to proof 26 times in a single blogpost and demand that you re-link things directly into my Twitter feed" into "why aren't you happy that Stelmach followed medical advice and David Swann pissed into the face of it for political points?" into "whoa, who said the CDC was a bigger expert than David Swann" into "well you didn't directly link to CDC only to a news story interviewing them and its old anyways" into "well you're not entitled to your own facts even though every fact you've already brought up has been blissfully ignored because they make David Swann look like a liar and an idiot".

Instead, as a bit of a followup for everybody else in the universe who has already started dozing off, I'll do what Ken is so worried about: I'll link directly to the Hansard discussing the flu clinics.

First off, here's Ron Liepert in the Legislative Assembly dealing with what the Colby Cosh article discussed: making sure 60% of Albertans want to get the shot vs. 90% of Albertans refuse to get the shot:

Yet we still see polls saying that people are reluctant to get their shots. They say that there’s too much confusion. Some say that the vaccine isn’t safe, et cetera. Well, I’m here to give the people of Alberta a simple message: we have a safe, effective vaccine, don’t listen to the naysayers, and get immunized.

Also featured is the immortal words that have gotten Liepert in so much shit these last couple of days:

Mass clinics started delivering the vaccine across Alberta today, focusing on the high-risk groups first. I’d ask everyone to pleasecheck www.albertahealthservices.ca for the nearest clinic. That means that people under 65 with chronic health conditions and their caregivers, kids between six months and five years of age, pregnant women, health care workers, and people in remote or isolated settings and communities, all these groups, should get immunized as soon as possible. No one will be turned away at the clinics, but we are aiming to have those groups who can benefit the most come forward first.

Now here's former Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft:

Dr. Taft: Well, thanks, Mr. Speaker. The Minister of Health and Wellness is correct when he says that Albertans should ignorepeople spreading disinformation about the safety of vaccines. The safe, responsible thing to do is to get immunized as soon as possible for the H1N1 influenza. This morning about 9:20 I drove past the immunization clinic at Westmount mall in Edmonton. I was hoping to get immunized myself.

And now finally, even though I'd already linked to it (another lie! another lie! don't believe your eyes!), here's Dr. Swann admitting he was going to get innoculated as soon as possible:

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Pandemic influenza is here. The vaccine will save lives, and I applaud the tireless efforts of health officials and front-line workers delivering this important preventative measure. I myself will be getting the vaccine when I have hours to spare.

For those who know what hyperlinks do, you can read the Hansard yourself. There is more to the quotes I'm not including here, and if you think this lets these disgusting Liberals off the hook then there's something seriously wrong with you.